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Post by backshophoss on Apr 22, 2015 0:24:52 GMT -5
There were times that the air bags would be a hair "off" on the prototypes,1 car would higher or lower
then the car next to it.
Just make sure the coupler height matches the rest of the fleet,file or shim as needed,if you plan to
run in push mode,use a KD-118 shelf coupler on the car's "B" end.
When the comet I's wandered up to Port Jervis,they carried step boxes on board till NYMTA got involved
and built the platform mounted step boxes that spanned 2 doors.
They were made of RR ties bolted together,then spiked into the platform surface.
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Post by slowfreight on May 22, 2015 22:59:10 GMT -5
So here is some of the challenges to using the IMW Comet I shell. You'll note that there's lots of scratches and gouges actually carved into the master.  A little masking tape, some spot putty, and lots of patience are required to clean this mess up.  The molded-on end detail is also worth upgrading.  I started by removing the diaphragms. Turns out the buffer plate will also need to go if I will have any hope of making this car match up with the Walthers cars. I also have a Walthers Budd streamline car that I can salvage new marker lights, but haven't shaved off the IMW ones yet.  I will also have to scratchbuild a new underframe, salvaging what detail I can from the IMW underframe. Plus, the bottom of the car at the stepwells should taper in towards the bottom but doesn't. I don't think that will be too notable, but it's certainly not correct. Bolsters will also be a bit of a headache because I'm using the IHP trucks, which are meant to fit the Walthers underframe. IMW cut up a Comet car and grafted the parts onto a casting, but the bolsters aren't clean enough to satisfy me so I will probably start with styrene rod. |
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Post by backshophoss on May 23, 2015 1:07:23 GMT -5
If you need better trucks,Walters has released the truck use on the current Amfleet cars
920-2131 Amfleet inside bearing truck,msrp $14.90 a pair.
From the current Walters Flyer,May'15.pg28
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Post by slowfreight on May 23, 2015 7:51:56 GMT -5
If you need better trucks,Walters has released the truck use on the current Amfleet cars 920-2131 Amfleet inside bearing truck,msrp $14.90 a pair. From the current Walters Flyer,May'15.pg28 Amfleet trucks aren't correct, but the IHP Comet trucks are actually pretty nice. Plus, these cars have 32" wheels, not 36", and I've got them outfitted with 33" NWSL wheels. The difference is noticeable. |
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Post by slowfreight on May 23, 2015 8:10:32 GMT -5
I took a pause on my Comet I to work on the Comet II cars. I'm doing these assembly-line fashion since I have 4. By the time I get through these, I should have a good idea how I want to finish out the Comet I. From the box, the cars are missing a lot of detail on the underside. One should not be able to see daylight between trucks and carbody. There's supposed to be a center sill and some ribs. Plus, the trucks have no detail to speak of. Here's a stock car in the foobie NJDOT paint:    First biggest improvement is to remove the end doors and expose the interior bulkhead that Walthers was so generous to include.  I have a sheet of stainless diamond tread to overlay in the vestibule eventually. Working with basic styrene strip, I've upgraded the underframe, added body-mount Kadees, and swapped out the trucks. Next, I will be upgrading the overall underframe detail. Apologies for the bowed step boxes...shell is not screwed on.    Eventually, I will hit these shells with Allclad. While I made it in to AA Hobbies this week and he has all of the Allclad colors, I have no idea which color I need for the aluminum and faded aluminum colors that these cars wear. |
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Post by mgwsy on May 23, 2015 17:55:01 GMT -5
Do you have the RMC article about detailing the NJT car undeframes?
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Post by slowfreight on May 23, 2015 18:24:34 GMT -5
Do you have the RMC article about detailing the NJT car undeframes? That's what I've been working from, plus scads of photos. |
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Post by slowfreight on Jun 27, 2015 15:16:14 GMT -5
Been making steady progress on detailing the underframes. I'm ready to start running piping. Ironically, because I want to use Alclad, these NJT cars will probably end up full strip and repaint jobs so that they can become NJT. Here you can see a before and after on the straight coach:  The original RMC article was a bit hard to decipher, but after studying what pics I could find, I think I got the details around the brake valves right:  This change makes quite a bit of difference, at least before painting. BTW, I also ran cables under the car using solder. I decided that I would forego the cable brackets as I'm trying not to do the level of detailing I might do on my regular Midwestern fleet. The cab car needs quite a bit of extra underframe work. Here you can see the air tanks (cut down from Details West GE tanks), repositioned brake valve, and the scratch-built sand box. I don't understand why these cars had sand boxes on unpowered trucks. Amtrak, Metra, and Caltrain don't have sanders on cab cars.  On the other side, I had to scratchbuild the cab signal box as well.  I also tested these cars on the Empire Valley railroad...not exactly known as the route of good track, and they performed flawlessly. Lastly, here's a few pics to show my consternation with the IMW shell. If I line up the roofs, it is apparent that the bottom of the step boxes don't line up, nor do the insteps at the bottoms of the floors.  If I make the floor insteps line up, the roof isn't *too* noticeable, but the step boxes still don't match:  I would like to build the Comet I just for variety, but I'm struggling with how to make it work. I think I may have to cut off the step boxes and scratchbuild ones that are 1) taller and 2) correctly angled. I also thought of "kitting" my 5th comet car for the roof and possibly the ends, and of cutting the entire car in half and adding whatever height turns out to be missing. That would be difficult without a good table saw and fine blade, but I'd manage. Here's about the best compromise position, and it still requires rebuilding the step boxes methinks:  |
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Post by slowfreight on Jun 27, 2015 15:31:23 GMT -5
Does anyone have in their collection a good side-by-side photo of a Comet I and II coupled? Sometimes it looks like the Comet I steps didn't come down as low, like there's one less step. Other times it looks like they measure the same.
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Post by acelaphillies on Jun 27, 2015 21:27:53 GMT -5
This was the only photo I could find online:  Unfortunately the part that you need is cut off at the bottom! Maybe looking through old videos may yield some results? Your photos clearly illustrate the problems that you are having with the IMW car. That's a real shame. Maybe the Comet was one of his first kits? IMW products really seem to be improving. I have seen some photos online of the new Silverliner cars and the level of detail that is cast on is pretty impressive for a resin kit! |
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Post by slowfreight on Jul 25, 2015 20:32:35 GMT -5
I finally found a pic showing a Comet I and Comet II coupled. I'm violating my usual hard rule and posting someone else's photo here because I can't remember where I found it. If I can find the link, I'll delete the pic.  Several things to note here...even with the rebuilt doors and added traps, you can spot a Comet I in a crowd. The marker lights aren't recessed, and the skirt that used to hold the sliding pocket door is much wider than on a Comet II. The cars on either side are Comet I's. The car on the left is only lower because the track is out of alignment. Notice that the roof lines match, the step in the car sills match, as does the undersides of the cars. The step wells match too, which mine don't. Here's the shocker. The Walthers car is incorrect. Count the steps...it has one too many because it's the Amtrak Horizon step wells. www.trainweb.org/amtrakpix/locoshots/horizon/54552A.jpgSo, I need to rebuild the step boxes to make them not as deep with one less step. Methinks this will be a good Shapeways project since I'll need 16 parts. I need to do a little more measuring, but it looks like the notch Walthers made where Amtrak has the corner sill step is really the bottom of the Comet car stepwell. This will also give me a chance to close things up using the stainless steel diamond tread I got from Plano Products. Back to scrounging for good detail shots of the cab car pilot. I finally concluded that the only thing Walthers did to the tooling to make a cab car was add end windows and a headlight. They eliminated every other detail that would define a cab car. Why does it seem my light upgrade projects always suffer from scope creep?  |
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Post by slowfreight on Jul 25, 2015 20:39:38 GMT -5
That I think of it, I'll bet the difference in step wells was a result of switching from Pioneer trucks with 32" wheels to Buckeye trucks with 36" wheels...besides the 2" of wheel lift, the bolsters are probably sitting higher too.
So I'll be settling on the compromise position with rebuilt step boxes on the Walthers cars, but unfortunately, the step in the floors won't line up.
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Post by backshophoss on Jul 25, 2015 22:07:30 GMT -5
That's the JOY of a minor upgrade project,you tweak 1 detail,then you notice what else needs to tweaked,etc......  |
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Post by slowfreight on Sept 7, 2015 12:51:52 GMT -5
I'm back in the saddle again. These have been going slowly, once I decided the traps needed to be replaced. Instead of teaching myself CADD, I've been working with Mike Bartel at IHP to design the part for me, and then he will upload it on Shapeways. That means that once completed, the rest of you can also upgrade your SEPTA, Metro North and NJT Comet cars to the correct 3-step traps.
If anyone here can get access to the Comet IIs to take measurements, please PM me. There's a few things that I've guesstimated from photos, and I only sort of trust the IMW shell dimensions.
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Post by stevef45 on Sept 9, 2015 1:03:29 GMT -5
Should get him to make the sand boxes also for the cars!!
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